Chapter 66: Chapter 66

Then take a shower! I'll pick you up at eight.

I sighed. That was typical. Audrey always needed someone to hang out with on weekends. Out of all of my friends, she was the one who waited most eagerly for the holidays to come so she could spend them in Shatterlake's grubby disco or with us.

She knew I didn't have time tonight. Layla must have stood her up, and I was number two on her list.

All right. My answer was short and concise, but that was enough. Audrey wouldn't have let her plans go astray anyway, even if I had disagreed. I just hoped she wouldn't try to talk me into going to the disco. I wasn't a party pooper, but ten horses couldn't get me into that building. Too loud, too small, too musty.

When Audrey didn't answer, I closed my phone and let it disappear into my jacket pocket. As I was walking through a more deserted part of town, I chanced a look at the small alleys that surrounded me and stopped when I noticed a group of people. There were five men, some of whom were leaning against the walls of the buildings. They looked suspicious, and not just because they were the only people in an otherwise empty street. I could almost feel their aggressive energy. It mingled with their unclear words like an unpleasant, shrill tone that promised trouble.

Such a sight was unusual but not impossible in my town. Normally I would have hurried to get to the bus stop quickly so as not to attract the men's attention. Today, however, it was different. Four of the men had surrounded the fifth. It was impossible to guess what they were talking about without standing next to them. But something about their clenched fists bothered me. It awakened my moral courage.

The fifth man had black hair and was raising his hands defensively. However, he was not being given the chance to finish talking, as two of the four men came a step closer to put him under further pressure.

I gnawed at my lower lip and weighed my chances. It would be best to just leave, but I didn't want to read something in the newspaper that I would regret for the rest of my life. I heard stories about gangs and drugs and all that in cities, and I was sure that such things happened in small towns too.

Still, it was probably too early to call the police. Nothing had happened. Not yet.

There was no one else on the sidewalk behind the buildings whom I could ask for help—I would have to go around the building next to me to get to a front door. I wondered if Mr. Harrison was still in the store. On the other hand, I didn't want to involve him in a matter that was none of his business. These guys might go on a rampage in the night and loot his shop.

With that, I had exhausted all ideas that had come to me. For a second I hesitated to get seriously involved in the problems of five grown men. Then I saw one of the guys grab the other one roughly by the shoulder and give him a push.

That's enough.

With all the courage I had accumulated in my eighteen years of life, I resolutely stretched my back and hurried over to the group. I hoped that the men would calm down and leave—and that my decision was not a mistake.

I reached the gang just as the outsider regained his balance. He had stumbled due to the rough thrust, but he still seemed calm and defensive. When I approached him, our eyes met for a fraction of a second. There was anger, caution, and heat, but what I noticed much more was the blue of his eyes. It was as deep as I had never seen in a human being before—like the ocean on a poster or a travel catalogue. It distracted me long enough to almost lose my momentum.

Now four full-grown men were in front of me. Two of them continued to be mostly hidden behind the others—a blond man with glasses and a ponytail, and an ash-blond guy that looked younger than me. The two guys in front were obviously playing the leaders. One of them had dark skin and was almost ridiculously muscular. His eyes seemed friendly at heart, but unforgiving. His crossed arms reinforced this impression. The second man in the foreground was the clichéd image of a gang leader. A tall guy with short-shaven hair, a tattoo on his arm, and tattered jeans. Everything about his figure seemed heated and intimidating. The air around him seemed to blaze in a strange way. His gaze was hostile and fiery. He was staring at me so pugnaciously, I could have sworn that he was ready to fight. He was intense.

Only now I saw exactly how big the two men were. They were taller than my father. I felt as if I were standing below two skyscrapers that were about to fall down on me.

The lump in my throat revealed that this had probably been a stupid idea after all, but now there was no turning back. The blue-eyed man could not stand up to these guys all alone.

"Is there a problem here?" I tried to ask confidently. It startled me how hoarse and rough my voice was. I was afraid they couldn't hear me at all, so I pulled the phone out of my pocket to put a little conviction into my words.

My scam seemed to work. As soon as I lifted the phone, the two front men glanced at each other. They seemed less aggressive and almost nervous. Meanwhile, the young man with the blue eyes opened his mouth to say something but then decided against it.

The silence between us was cutting. It felt like someone was squeezing the breath out of my lungs while I waited for the group's response. It felt like hours passed before their shoulders relaxed. My heart was pounding like a jackhammer.

"No," replied the dark-skinned man. He made a gesture as if he wanted to leave.

His tattooed friend didn't seem to want to let go of his anger so quickly, because he threw a telling glance at the outsider. Then he turned around as well. "Let's get out of here."

His word seemed law. He had not even taken his first, booted step before his friends followed him.

Only one of them stopped—the lanky boy with ash-blond hair who didn't seem to fit into the group at all. He wore inconspicuous sneakers and khaki pants. He watched his friends motionlessly for a moment and then turned to me. At the sight of him I cringed.

That was no ordinary boy. There was no real reason why I was so sure, but that feeling grabbed my neck like an icy hand. Maybe it was the way he stared right through me, as if he can't see me or I wasn't not even there. I wondered where the deep rings under his eyes came from. Did he have some kind of disease? His eyes flitted around as if he wanted to reorient himself, and then they finally wandered somewhere between my neck and my collarbone.

"Ian!" thundered the voice of the leader. It echoed through the alley like a hammer blow and scared me to death. Ian, however, reacted in a staggered fashion. He looked through me for a second without any emotion until he finally trotted after the group.

Even after they had disappeared around the corner, I couldn't pull my eyes away. Who on earth were those guys? I could think of so many words, yet none of them seemed to really fit this gang. They were different in a strange way. I couldn't remember ever seeing any of them before. After this meeting I hoped that it would stay that way.

"Not bad."

The young man's voice startled me. I had almost forgotten him. I had only committed this heroic, stupid act to help him. I felt his attention on me as I turned around. Suddenly I was strangely self-conscious.

"Everything okay?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yeah," he confirmed and emphasized his words with a nod. "I didn't think they'd be so quick to rush out when they saw a phone."

It was amazing. Although he had just been threatened by at least two men who were each the size of a house, he didn't seem a bit tense. I could tell by his loose posture.

"Thank you," the man finally added and gave me a wry smile. "You're pretty brave."

I felt myself blushing and pointed my thumb over my shoulder. "Not really. Two streets away is my boss's store. There are baseball bats there."

That made him laugh. It was a bright tone that I really liked. Until now I had only seen him in the shadow of those strange men, but now I could take a closer look at him. He wore dark jeans and a blue top, which made his eyes shine even more. They were a dark, warm blue, contrasted against the palest complexion I had ever seen on a black-haired man. He had to be a little older than me and a good six feet tall. Those giants from just now probably made everyone seem smaller than they really were.

"Are you having trouble with them?" Since I'd helped him, I was allowed to ask. At least, I thought so.

"No." His answer was stretched. "I guess they just didn't like my nose."

I was not someone who claimed to have an above-average knowledge of human nature. In fact, I was pretty naïve, but the words of this young man seemed to jump at my face. He didn't want me to know the truth.

"I see," I replied stiffly. This was none of my business. I had helped him and done my duty.

"Are you from Shatterlake?" he asked.

My nod was enough to make his dark brows arch anxiously.

"Then let me give you some advice," he said. "Better not mess with them. They're . . . pretty shady."

His simple words seemed to get to the heart of the matter far too well. They sent a shiver down my spine that I didn't understand—like a cold wind suddenly catching me even though there's not a cloud in the sky.

"You're probably right." I remembered that I was about to miss my bus. "Do you want me to help you get home or something?"

I wasn't quite sure how to end our conversation, but he laughed again in a pleasant, open way.

"No, don't worry. I'm getting home."

"Good." I smiled. "Well, then I'll put on my cape and help the next citizen in need."

We both laughed at that.

"Take care of yourself," I said before I turned my back and hurried to the bus stop.

"You too," was hisanswer. It came over his lips so softly and muffled that I wasn't sure I hadreally heard it.